OGDEN — Austin Beus could shoot a 1,000 free throws and never toss up an airball. So when Fremont's most clutch foul shooter airballed the first of 1-and-1 with 14 seconds remaining in Saturday's 5A championship game, he was more than shocked.
"I've always dreamed of that situation, but in my dreams I make it," said Beus.
Fortunately for the Fremont senior, the miss won't come back to haunt him.
With the No. 1 Silverwolves leading by two in the final seconds, Beus stripped the ball away from West Jordan's Tee McCook as he drove for the tying basket to preserve Fremont's thrilling 50-48 victory at the Dee Events Center.
"We've talked about this since we were sophomores," said Beus, who admitted that being the preseason No. 1 team in 5A only drove him and his teammates to work harder to win the school's first basketball title.
The victory capped a tremendous season for Fremont (23-2), as well as an incredible championship game that featured 10 ties and 14 lead changes. In the fourth quarter alone, there were four lead changes, with neither team enjoying more than a three-point lead.
West Jordan enjoyed its biggest lead of the quarter at 47-44 with under two minutes remaining on a 3-pointer by Josh Hansen. Following a Fremont miss on the other end, the unheralded Jaguars were in a great position to win the game by hanging onto the ball and making their foul shots.
West Jordan discovered quickly that wasting time against Fremont's defense isn't that easy. With 1:03 remaining, the Wolves' defense forced the Jaguars into a turnover, and 12 seconds later Deseret Morning News tournament MVP Ryan Sanchez hit the shot of his life.
After working off a double screen, Sanchez buried a 3-pointer from the top of the key despite being fouled. He successfully finished off the four-point play, putting Fremont ahead 48-47. Sanchez finished with a game-high 18 points.
"We didn't even necessarily want a three, we just wanted a shot for him," said Fremont coach Bernie Graziano.
Fremont's defense forced West Jordan into another turnover, but this time Sanchez — who made all 17 of his state tournament free throw attempts until that point — only made 1-of-2 foul shots with 40 seconds remaining.
West Jordan's Peddler had a chance to tie the game, but even he wasn't immune to the pressure associated with the thousands of screaming fans in the Dee Events Center.
Peddler's free throw cut Fremont's lead to 49-48, and shortly after Trevor Higley also made 1-of-2 foul shots to increase the lead to 50-48 with 6.5 seconds remaining.
"I was worried that they were going to make a 3-point shot and we'd lose," said a relieved Graziano.
In the third quarter, both teams were reining in 3-pointers.
Higley buried a baseline 3-pointer to put Fremont ahead 34-30 late in the third quarter, only to be answered by a pair of 3-pointers from West Jordan's Michael Cordova.
Higley, who finished with 14 points, buried another 3-pointer to end the quarter, giving the Wolves a 37-36 lead.
"I hadn't been hitting very much this whole tournament," said Higley, who made 3-of-5 3-pointers. "I don't know if it was the court or the depth perception, but I was feeling it today."
Fremont finished with seven 3-pointers, which helped it overcome West Jordan's 54 percent shooting from the field.
While many people considered West Jordan the Cinderella team of the tournament, coach Scott Briggs said the reason his team was in the championship was because it believed it belonged.
"Maybe in December that would've been the case, but we played this tournament like we were supposed to be here," said Briggs, who led West Jordan to the title in 2001.
McCook led West Jordan with 15 points, while Hansen added 11.
E-mail: jedward@desnews.com